The Tiffin University men's basketball team (3-4, 0-2 G-MAC) allowed less than 60 points for the second game in a row but also failed to reach 50 offensively for the second straight game as the Dragons lost 52-45 on Saturday afternoon at Malone.  

The first half featured three ties and six lead changes as the two teams entered halftime deadlocked at 24. The Dragons led for over 14 minutes and led by as many as eight, 19-11, after a fastbreak layup by Jonah Nesmith at the 6:52 mark. 

A jump shot by Marquel Newsome with 5:11 remaining in the half made it 23-15 Dragons and that was the last made field goal by Tiffin in the half as Malone closed on a 9-1 run to tie it going into halftime.  

The Dragons were hot to start the second half and a three-pointer by TJ Pangonas gave TU a 33-26 advantage with 16:24 remaining. Tiffin maintained their lead until a Malone three-pointer gave the Pioneers a 36-34 lead halfway through the half. 

The Dragons had another offensive lull and went 13 minutes between made field goals. After the three by Pangonas, the next made field goal was by Noah Smith with 3:11 remaining.  

Five free throws put Tiffin back on top 39-36 with 8:03 left, but nearly five minutes of no field goals allowed Malone to make a run, and the Pioneers closed the game on a 16-6 run over the final 8:03 to get the win.  

After shooting 3 of 23 from the field in the second half of Thursday's loss, the Dragons went 5 of 23 in the second half on Saturday and finished the game 15 of 50 for 30 percent.  

The Dragons were on top for over 25 minutes while Malone led for just over nine minutes.  

Nesmith and Smith finished in double figures with 12 and 10, respectively, while Demar Burton had 6 points and grabbed 12 rebounds.